PAHOKEE, Fla. — People are telling WPTV that construction has stopped at an affordable housing project in Pahokee.
Palm Beach County staff said they have given Kansas City-based developer Michael Snodgrass about $1.2 million to build a 60-unit townhome complex with a daycare center at 200 S. Barfield Hwy.
WATCH BELOW: Records show various companies have filed liens against developer
Snodgrass's company, Oikos Development Corporation, also received mortgages from the Federal Department of Agriculture and utilized financing options for its estimated $7 million private investment into the property.
Contractors are also complaining about not being paid for the work performed on the project. Records WPTV reporter Ethan Stein obtained show that various companies have filed liens against the developer and his construction company. Those liens range from $750 to $45,000 in unpaid bills.
Anthony Atkins, who is a general contractor for Tampa-based Milestone Construction Contractors, told WPTV he took about a 36% discount to become a subcontractor on a project involving a USDA project. He was going to put roofs on each of the buildings on the property, but he's still waiting for the final $33,000 in payments.
"You know I'm not a big company, so that throws a wrench in my finances," Atkins told WPTV on the phone. "So, it's been uncomfortable, unpleasant."
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Pahokee resident Loletha Sobers told us she was so excited for this project, because the city needs affordable housing. She said the project is a symbol of hope for the neighborhood and the stoppage is frustrating.
"We really need affordable housing for the residents," said Sobers. "This place here has nowhere for people to live. It saddens us as the citizens of Pahokee for them to start a project like this and for them to stop."
Benard Roberson, who also lives in Pahokee because he struggled to find housing, said affordable housing is needed across the Glades region in Palm Beach County.
"This is really good for the area because the housing in this area isn't very good," said Roberson.
Pahokee City Manager Michael Jackson told WPTV the need for affordable housing in Pahokee is similar to every other community across the United States. Jackson works at City Hall, where the mockups for the townhomes are displayed in the lobby along with flyers. He told WPTV the developer told the city about the stoppage, calling it a restart. Pahokee didn't give any funding to the developer to complete the project, according to Jackson.
John Wilson, a former commissioner for South Bay, said everybody was excited for the project because of the need and the initial building speed. He said he's frustrated because there was no reason given publicly for the work to stop over the last two weeks.
"It was going so good and then all of a sudden, bam. So now we want to know why it's stopped and when it will start," Wilson said. "It feels like you're playing football and you're almost in the endzone then you fumble the ball."
County staff said the stoppage was due to some issues the contractor was having with the project manager on-site. But, the county said it would visit the work site this week and was under the impression the project, 70% complete, would be scheduled to finish on time in December.
Snodgrass told WPTV he plans on finishing the project and he expects work to get restarted this week. He also said he wasn't aware of issues the county mentioned and that some work has been completed over the last few weeks, but not to his satisfaction.
"As with any development, contractor and subcontractor timing and scheduling is affected by multiple factors," Snodgrass wrote. "The bottom line for us, as a nonprofit, is that the project will get finished. We will have additional subs on site next week."
He also said they plan to ensure every contractor is paid in full.